Hawker Beechcraft Expects China and India to Continue Driving Demand for Business Aviation in Asia

Hawker Beechcraft Corporation (HBC) today announced it continues to see strong long-term growth prospects for business aviation across Asia and has identified it as a key growth market for the coming decade. This viewpoint is supported by new research that reveals that demand for business aircraft deliveries in the region has increased dramatically since 2001. According to recent JETNET research, deliveries of business aircraft across Asia increased by 133 percent during the 2006-2010 timeframe when compared with the period between 2001-2005.

HBC will display three of its popular models at the Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition (ABACE) March 27-29 in Shanghai, China: the flagship super-midsize Hawker 4000 business jet, the Hawker 900XP and a Beechcraft King Air C90GTx.

“ABACE is a key event for us, as not only is it one of the flagship events on the Asian business aviation calendar, but it is also a chance for us to connect with our core stakeholders in the region and to showcase our unique proposition to one of the most exciting aviation markets in the world,” said Sean McGeough, vice president, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia.

Asia’s share of worldwide business aircraft deliveries increased from 5.4 percent to 8.7 percent between the periods 2001-2005 and 2006-2010. North America, for so long the dominant force in business aviation, saw its share decrease from 67 percent to 55 percent during the same period. HBC believes that this shift in delivery share signifies the growing importance and influence of emerging markets’ presence in the worldwide business aviation market.

HBC saw a 103 percent increase in the number of jets and a 97 percent increase in the number of turboprops it delivered to Asia between 2006-2010 when compared to the period 2001-2005. JETNET data also shows that HBC accounted for 41 percent of the total number of deliveries in Asia during the past decade.

“Over the past few years Asia has really been the driving force behind the global economy, with burgeoning economies such as China and India helping the region post GDP growth scores of 8.3 percent,” McGeough said. “This growth is driving up demand for business aviation and is apparent in the increase in the number of deliveries during the second half of the past decade.”

Furthermore, McGeough said, the proportion of the business aircraft market that is for sale – which is often used as an indicator of the health of the whole market – is relatively low in the region. That figure currently stands at around 7 percent compared with 12 percent in North America and 16 percent in Europe, suggesting that the market in Asia remains strong.

Hawker Beechcraft Corporation is a world-leading manufacturer of business, special mission, light attack and trainer aircraft – designing, marketing and supporting aviation products and services for businesses, governments and individuals worldwide. The company’s headquarters and major facilities are located in Wichita, Kan., with operations in Little Rock, Ark.; Chester, England, U.K.; and Chihuahua, Mexico. The company leads the industry with a global network of more than 100 factory-owned and authorized service centers. For more information, visit www.hawkerbeechcraft.com.